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Chicken Tostadas

4.6

(118)

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Photo by Romulo Yanes

Once a way to make use of stale tortillas (by toasting and/or frying them), tostadas are so good that it wasn't long before people simply started using fresh tortillas. After biting into these layers of flavor—crunchy, creamy, luscious—you'll see why.

Recipe information

  • Total Time

    45 min

  • Yield

    6 servings

Ingredients

1 medium white onion
1 pound tomatoes, quartered
2 large garlic cloves
1 or 2 fresh serrano chiles, stemmed
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon vegetable oil, divided
3 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
6 large radishes, halved and sliced
1/2 cup chopped cilantro, divided
1 rotisserie chicken, meat coarsely shredded (4 cups)
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1 (1-pound) can refried beans, heated
1 avocado, halved, pitted, and peeled
1/2 cup Mexican crema or sour cream
1/4 cup crumbled queso añjo (aged white cheese, also called cotija) or ricotta salata
Accompaniments: sliced serranos; lime wedges

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Preheat broiler.

    Step 2

    Cut half of onion into 3/4-inch wedges, then chop remainder. Toss onion wedges, tomatoes, garlic, and whole chiles with 2 tablespoons oil in a 4-sided sheet pan, spreading in 1 layer.

    Step 3

    Broil about 4 inches from heat until softened and charred, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, toss together lettuce, radishes, chopped onion, and half of cilantro.

    Step 4

    Purée tomato mixture in a blender along with one or both roasted serranos (to taste) and 1 teaspoon salt until smooth(use caution when blending hot foods). Transfer purée to a bowl and stir in chicken, remaining cilantro, and salt to taste.

    Step 5

    Heat remaining 1/2 cup oil in a heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Fry tortillas, 1 at a time, turning once or twice and pressing with tongs to immerse, until golden brown, 45 to 60 seconds per tortilla. Drain briefly on paper towels, then transfer to plates.

    Step 6

    Spread tortillas thickly with heated refried beans, then top with chicken mixture. Slice avocado over tostadas and dollop with crema.

    Step 7

    Mound lettuce mixture on top and sprinkle with cheese.

    Step 8

    Serve with: Margaritas

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